Welcome to DocMartin

Bauhinia, emblem of Hong Kong, is a tree with beautiful, orchid-like flowers.

Chek Lap Kok will be levelled to make way for runways, leaving only a token hill... this is the last survey Lazell and Goodyear will make on the island...

Pets can help people heal from illnesses

Visits to openbill stork colonies in Thailand

The magazine for the serious birdspotter, Vol II

A family holiday, with strong birding - and photography - elements, in Yunnan, sw China.

Deep Bay wetland, Hong Kong - internationally important, especially for water birds

Birding in Hong Kong

Info and links re bird flu, especially the nasty H5N1 variant in Asia

Autumn bird migration at Beidaihe, China, 1986-1990

Autumn bird migration at Beidaihe 1986 to 1990 conclusions

Checklist of the birds of Beidaihe, east China

Instead of environmental enlightenment, swathes of society have lurched towards anti-science; yet this planet is our life support system.

It is only unforeseen events like the industrial revolution and the “green revolution” that helped feed many more people and stave off catastrophe.

Can Hong Kong find no better way of dealing with waste than shipping it to a beautiful coastal area and setting fire to it?

Instead of aiming for a leisurely life after work, Hansen plans to better focus his time on climate science, along with communicating the science and its policy implications.

World’s biggest machine surely discovers the elusive Higgs boson, helping explain mass. Further quests await.

While last year’s Nobel Prize in Physics was for an esoteric advance in knowledge — theoretical work on sub-atomic particles, n

Though “immune system” is a familiar term, there is still much to be learned about how our bodies defend against diseases.

Much as Darwin was influenced by his findings on the Galapagos, Wallace drew on discoveries he made on tropical islands where sea level changes played vital roles in determining species distributions.

Picture an atom, and you may imagine spherical electrons orbiting a nucleus packed with particles like neutrons.

In this season to be jolly, even normally serious scientists may loosen up a little, perhaps publishing frivolous research, and looking on the brighter side of life.

Beyond producing a pretty music album cover, mapping the brain’s circuitry may lead to significant medical advances

Our memories play vital roles in defining who we are. Yet can you really trust your memory?

The age of the wonder drug seems to be drawing to a close, bringing to an end modern medicine as we know it

While we can thrive on a variety of diets, it also makes it very tough or even impossible to recommend an ideal human diet.

Off-the shelf headsets and DIY implants can help get you started.

Hofstadter’s butterfly is a remarkable spectrum first drawn by a remarkable man.

Thorium, which just might prove key to a new generation of nuclear reactors.

3D printing is developing rapidly, with applications including rapidly making complex prototypes, and even creating aeroplane parts.

After a holiday in Wallacea - northeast Sulawesi and the north Moluccas - in August, I've written an article on travels and som

I’m about to confess to long-term crazy behaviour on my part. And then, I will read your mind.

            First, the confession. For over a quarter of a century, I have devoted considerable effort to what may well be a lost cause: trying to encourage far stronger environmental protection.

Gurney's Pitta back from oblivion

Philippine Eagle conservation on Mindanao, the Philippines

Hunting and habitat destruction have brought these magnificent cats perilously close to extinction. Can the most threatened of the sub-species claw its way back?

Taman Negara - rainforest national park in Malaysia

On wind farms and actual or possible threats to migratory birds, including in China.